More and more oil and gas wells are being planned and drilled as horizontal wells. It is now accepted that production and/or economics from horizontal wells can be far greater than from vertical wells in the same formations. This is a relatively new trend and a lot of the techniques, technology, and accepted valuation methods that have worked on vertical wells do not work the same for horizontal legs of deviated wellbores. The industry is slowly catching up, but the efficiency and accuracy of the new technologies for horizontal wells can be very costly and are somewhat unreliable to date. There is a need for new systems and methods for adapting known technologies to provide intervention, methods, and data specifically suited for use with horizontal wells.
Adaptations that have been developed for horizontal wells include E-coil tubing, wireline well tractors, pump-down systems, etc. These services can be very expensive and time-consuming, and can add greatly to the cost of drilling and completing a horizontal well.
For these reasons, there is a need for systems and methods for providing power, two-way communication, and operation of downhole tools in horizontal and other non-vertical wellbores that are more reliable, cheaper, easier to maintain, easier to run, and less complicated than what is currently available.